WGBS SALE NARROWS ‘TALK SHOW’ COMPETITION (July 18, 1985)

Jefferson-Pilot Communications’ sale of WGBS (710 AM) to a
Spanish-language company — along with its purchase of WNWS (790 AM) — will
leave only three English news/talk stations in South Florida — WNWS, WINZ (940
AM) and WIOD (610 AM).

How does the competition feel about losing rival WGBS?

“I’m pleased to have forced one of the competition in the news/talk
arena to drop out of the race,” said David Hosley, news and program director of
WINZ-AM. “Of course, if (WGBS and WNWS) combine the best of both staffs, I look
forward to some head to head competition. There’s no question they’ll come after
WINZ, but I welcome the crystalization of the competition.”

Joel Day, general manager of WIOD, said: “I hate to see another
non-ethnic station on the AM band bite the dust. From a competitive standpoint,
I don’t think it will make much of a difference. The share of listeners that
WGBS had could just divide up among the other stations.”

Moving around

Here’s a run-down on who’s moving over and up on the local AM and FM
dials:

* Al Abraira said he was pushed off a sinking ship and has boarded a
sounder vessel. The former WGBS traffic reporter said he was told by the
station’s management that he would be dismissed when WGBS’ staff merged with
WNWS’. WGBS operations manager Lee Fowler said simply that the station’s use of
the Traffic Patrol service made Abraira’s reports obsolete. Either way, Abraira
is now heard on sister stations WINZ-AM and I-95 (WINZ 94.9 FM). He replaced Ray
Gordon, who’s now flight dispatcher for a charter airline.

* Jere Sullivan, morning show host on 97 AIA (WAIA 97.3 FM) has been
appointed station program manager.

* George Rudolph, program director of Life (WLYF 101.5 FM), will leave
that position in late August to become station manger of KUMU-AM and FM in
Honolulu.

* Dave Caprita, morning show host on Love 94 (WLVE 93.9 FM) until his
firing four months ago, is back on the air. Caprita is heard weekdays from 6-10
a.m. and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the new contemporary hit station
96X (WCJX 96.3 FM).

WAXY rock

Veteran rock jocks Robey Yonge and Rick Shaw (who is also program
director at WAXY 105.9 FM) have been working together on and off for more than
20 years, since the days of “Tiger Radio” WQAM (560 AM).

Yonge had moved to the sidelines of radio some time ago, acting as
broadcast spokesman for various commercial products. This spring, he returned to
the airwaves to fill in for Greg Budell on WAXY’s morning show while Budell
underwent a six-week treatment for drug and alcohol abuse. (Yonge himself had
been in a similar treatment center eight months before.) Since Budell’s return,
Yonge has been hosting a 1-6 p.m. Sundays “oldies” show at WAXY.

Last Sunday, Yonge missed his show because he was hospitalized for not
taking prescribed heart and blood pressure medication. He said he aggravated his
health problems by imbibing too much sake.

Shaw, who has described Yonge as “one of the greats of radio,” said
Yonge seemed to be in poor shape following his brief jump off the wagon, and
didn’t know whether he would resume hosting the Sunday show.

Yonge insists that he’s doing just fine on that front, but adds he might
not return to WAXY because he’s frustrated with the station’s carefully planned
programming.

“I’m a rock ‘n’ roll dinosaur!” exclaimed Yonge. “I want to pick my own
oldies, and play records on turntables, not tapes.”

It’ll be hard for Yonge to find any major station in this market that
will allow him that sort of freedom.

Ratings reports

The advance figures for the spring Arbitron radio ratings survey are due
at radio stations today. Among the items to watch for: the impact of Magic 102’s
(WMXJ 102.7 FM) new “contemporary adult” format on listeners; whether urban
contemporary Hot 105 (WHQT 105.1) maintained its impressive sixth place debut
in the last Arbitron; whether Y-100 (WHYI 100.7), I-95 and WEDR (99.1 FM)
regained the footing they lost to Hot 105 in the last survey; how much Greg
Budell’s recent six-week absence affected WAXY’s morning show ratings; whether
WLYF retained its title as the most-listened to station in South Florida;
whether WINZ-AM’s Neil Rogers again beat WNWS’ Tom Leykis as leader of the
evening talk show circuit (Leykis topped Rogers in the fall ’84 Arbitron, but
Rogers recovered in the winter ’85); whether Lee “Baby” Simms will improve Love
94’s morning show ratings (he joined the station six weeks into the survey); and
how much strength rock station WSHE (103.5 FM) has gained following the demise
of its only direct competitor, K-102.